Labour Party Condemns Tinubu Electoral Act Assent, questioning the speed of approval and warning of risks to election integrity

The Labour Party caucus in the House of Representatives on Wednesday condemned President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s assent to the Electoral Act (Amendment) Bill 2026, describing the approval as hurried and troubling for the credibility of future elections.

Also read: Electoral Act 2026 Rift: More Excuses, More Lies To Legalise Rigging

The caucus leader, Mr Afam Ogene, who represents Ogbaru Federal Constituency of Anambra State, questioned the speed with which the President signed the amended legislation, barely a day after a heated plenary session in the House.

The controversy followed Tuesday’s rowdy sitting in which opposition lawmakers resisted alterations to provisions on the transmission of election results.

Members of the opposition had demanded electronic transmission without qualification, while lawmakers from the ruling All Progressives Congress backed a clause recognising both electronic and manual transmission in the event of technological failure.

Despite vocal objections and a subsequent walkout by opposition members, the amended version was passed.

Reacting to the presidential approval, Mr Ogene said the development occurred “at the speed of light”, raising concerns about whether the executive had sufficient time to scrutinise the document before assent.

“It is quite interesting that, even before the ink with which the parliament crossed the t’s and dotted the i’s on the clean copies of the bill dried up, the President has gleefully put his imprimatur on the bill,” Mr Ogene said in a statement issued in Abuja.

Mr Ogene argued that the assent disregarded widespread apprehension among Nigerians about the implications of the new Act for electoral transparency.

He suggested that the revised provisions represent a retreat from earlier advocacy for electronic voting and full digital transmission of results.

Citing a 2013 statement by Alhaji Lai Mohammed, then National Publicity Secretary of the defunct Action Congress of Nigeria, Mr Ogene noted that the party had previously pledged support for electronic voting to curb electoral malpractice.

According to the Labour Party lawmaker, the shift in position underscores what he described as a stark difference between campaign rhetoric and governance realities.

Mr Ogene also linked the issue to broader concerns about insecurity and economic hardship, arguing that political actors must be judged by their record in office.

President Tinubu has yet to publicly respond to the latest criticism. However, supporters of the amendment maintain that the inclusion of a manual transmission option is a pragmatic safeguard against technical disruptions that could otherwise jeopardise the conduct of elections.

The Labour Party caucus pledged to mobilise Nigerians to resist what it considers any compromise of the electoral system.

Mr Ogene said the opposition bloc would focus on persuading voters to hold leaders accountable at the polls.